welsh eggs

Another recipe we tried for Cael's school project, "Foods of my Family Tree," these Welsh Eggs were delicious and couldn't have been easier. They will definitely be added to our breakfast for dinner rotation.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups mild cheddar cheese, coarsely grated
• 12 eggs
• salt

  Directions:

  1. Butter 6 ovenproof dishes lavishly. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of the grated cheese in the bottom of each buttered dish.
  2. Break the eggs in a saucer and then slip the eggs (2) over the surface of the cheese. Take care not to break yolk. Allow 2 eggs per dish.
  3. Sprinkle the remainder of the cheese over the surface of each dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
  4. Place in a 325° oven for 20 minutes or until the eggs are fairly firm and just coated over. Serve at once.
  5. Serve with wedges of buttered toast for dipping into the egg yolk and the melted cheese.

appelflappen

We tried this Dutch recipe from Holland.com as part of Cael's school project, "Foods of my Family Tree." Elle didn't like this one, but it was Cael's favorite recipe of everything we tried. We used dried cranberries instead of currants.

Appelflappen

• 20 grams (0.7 oz) currants
• 20 grams (0.7 oz) raisins
• 3 dried apricots
• 100 ml (3.3 fl oz) apple juice
• 2 Jonagold apples (or similar crisp red apples)
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• Pinch of cinnamon
• 1 package puff pastry (usually ten squares)
• Coarse sugar

Add the currants, raisins and apricots to the apple juice and allow to soak, preferably overnight, but at least for a good hour. Allow the puff pastry to thaw, while you peel and core the apples. Chop the apples into small pieces. Drain the soaked fruit, but keep the water. Finely chop the apricots and add them together with the currants and raisins to the apples and stir.  Then add the sugar and the cinnamon and stir until everything is well mixed. Set aside.

Peel the separate squares of puff pastry apart. Place them before you with one corner pointing downwards. Place approximately 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of filling on the bottom half of the square, wet the edges of the dough with some of the soaking water that you saved before and fold the top part over, forming a triangle. Carefully press the dough around the filling and on the edges, making sure they are sealed.

Place the triangles on parchment paper on a baking sheet and place in the fridge while you pre-heat the oven to 200C (400F).

Remove the baking sheet from the fridge, and moisten the top of each triangle with a little bit of water, before sprinkling the coarse sugar on top. Place the baking sheet on the middle shelf in the oven, and bake the turnovers for 20 minutes or until golden. Can be eaten warm or cold.

kolaches

Elle, Gage, and I made these kolaches as part of Cael's school project, "Foods of my Family Tree" (Cael tasted, rated, and wrote up the project...). They were great and will definitely be a recipe that we make again to celebrate our Polish heritage.

Ingredients 

makes 2 dozen 

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1/4 cup strawberry jam
• 1/4 cup sifted confectioners' sugar 

  Directions

• Beat butter and cream cheese in mixer bowl until light and fluffy. Add flour gradually, beating well after each addition.
• Roll dough to 1/8 inch thickness on lightly floured surface. Cut into 2-inch circles. Spoon 1/4 teaspoon jam into center of each circle. Fold opposite edges together, slightly overlapping edges.
• Place 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 15 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.

chicken tikka masala

This was a great recipe for lunches from the kitchn. I did freeze several individual portions and the reheated really well. The chicken thighs did completely fall apart in the crock pot, but it was still amazing.

Serves 4 to 6

Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala 1 to 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch piece whole ginger, peeled and grated
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 to 2 tablespoons garam masala
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
3/4 cup heavy cream or coconut milk
Fresh cilantro, chopped
2 cups cooked rice, to serve
Cut the chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces and transfer them to a 3-quart or larger slow cooker. Stir in the onion, garlic, ginger, tomato paste, 1 tablespoon of garam masala, paprika, and kosher salt until the chicken is evenly covered with spices. Stir in the diced tomatoes with their juices.
→ If you have the time: Marinate the chicken in 1/2 cup yogurt for up to 6 hours. Shake to remove excess yogurt before transferring to the slow cooker.
→ If you have the time: Sauté the onions and garlic in a little olive oil over medium-high heat in a skillet until softened, then stir in the ginger, tomato paste, and spices until fragrant. Transfer to the slow cooker with the chicken and diced tomatoes. This will give your tikka masala more depth of flavor.

Cover the slow cooker and cook for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low. Fifteen minutes before the end of cooking, stir in the heavy cream. If you prefer a thicker sauce, leave the slow cooker uncovered for the last 15 minutes. Taste and add more garam masala or salt to taste.
Serve over rice with fresh cilantro sprinkled over the top of each serving. The tikka masala can be refrigerated for 3 to 4 days or frozen for 3 to 4 months.

 

mushroom stroganoff

This was a very simple lunch for the week from Amuse your Bouche-- made in the crockpot and served over farro.

Slow cooker mushroom stroganoff


Serves 3
500g mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, diced
1tbsp butter
1 stock cube, made up in 600ml hot water
2tbsp tomato ketchup
3tsp paprika
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
4tbsp sour cream (heaped)
Handful fresh parsley, chopped
In a large pan, melt the butter and gently cook the onion and mushroom for 5-10 minutes, until they are slightly softened and beginning to shrink in size, but are still not yet fully cooked. Transfer these to the slow cooker, and add the stock, kethcup, paprika and sliced garlic. Cook on high for 4 hours.
When cooked, stir in the sour cream and chopped parsley.
I liked my stroganoff as it was, but if you would like it to be thicker, just transfer it to a saucepan and simmer for 10 minutes to reduce it slightly.
Serve with pasta or rice.